Holding tank-less water ozonating system

ABSTRACT

A system is described herein which provides an ozonated liquid. The system comprises a liquid inlet arranged to continuously accept a liquid into the system at a desired flow rate; a liquid outlet to dispense ozonated liquid out of the system, the ozonated liquid having an oxidation-reduction potential of at least 450 mV due solely to ozone dissolved in the liquid, the liquid outlet being in fluid communication with the liquid inlet and arranged to dispense the ozonated liquid out of the system at the desired flow rate. The system has a tank-less ozonation flow path between the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet, the flow path adapted to ozonate the accepted liquid, producing the ozonated liquid to be dispensed out of the system. The accepted liquid has a fluid residence time in the ozonation flow path of less than 5 minutes prior to being dispensed as the ozonated liquid.

CROSS REFERENCE

The present application claims the benefit of: U.S. ProvisionalApplication 61/248,102 (filed Oct. 2, 2009); U.S. ProvisionalApplication 61/248,075 (filed Oct. 2, 2009); and U.S. Provisional61/248,055 (filed Oct. 2, 2009).

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present application relates generally to devices, and relatedmethods, that provide ozonated liquid. More particularly, the presentapplication relates to tank-less devices, and related methods, thatprovide ozonated liquid on demand.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Ozone is a naturally occurring allotrope of oxygen. It has been knownand used as an oxidant and disinfectant. In aqueous solutions, ozone iscapable of killing bacteria in seconds at appropriate concentrations. Itis often desirable to use ozone as a disinfecting or sanitizing agent asit imparts no odor and leaves no residue. The sanitizing properties ofozone dissolved in water, as well as its lack of odor and residue, makesuch a solution desirable to use for cleaning and disinfecting. Ozonatedwater can be used to disinfect or sanitize in both commercial and homesettings. For example, ozonated water can be used to disinfect orsanitize bathroom counters, produce, dishes and cutlery, or floors.

One convenient method for using ozone as a disinfectant or sanitizer isto dissolve it in water or a water based solution. The stability ofozone is often a complicating factor in its use as a disinfecting orsanitizing agent since the high reactivity of ozone, which imparts itsdisinfecting and sanitizing properties, also results in reaction withreducing agents and, therefore, decomposition. In light of the poorstability of ozone, however, one difficulty is the delivery of ozonatedwater in an “on demand” basis. Ozone in ozonated water, produced inanticipation of demand, will eventually decompose and return to beingnon-ozonated water.

Known ozonation systems for producing ozonated water suitable forcleaning, disinfecting or sanitizing are designed with a tank of waterand a recirculating ozonating flow path. The water flows through theozonating flow path and dissolves an amount of ozone therein. Lowefficiency in the ozonating flow path results in the need to recirculatethe ozonated water back through the ozonation flow path in order toachieve the desired amount of dissolved ozone. This is typicallyachieved by recirculating the ozonated water back into the tank of waterand running the ozonation system for a period of time until all thewater in the tank is sufficiently ozonated.

Known ozonation systems have addressed the delay between (a) startingthe system and (b) delivery of ozonated water having a usable level ofozone, by increasing the efficiency of the ozonating flow path and/or byusing a continuously recirculating system.

It is possible to produce ozonated water “on demand” using acontinuously recirculating system. Continuously recirculating systemshave an ozonation flow path that recirculates ozonated water back to theholding tank, and the system ozonates the water in the system regardlessof whether ozonated water is being dispensed. In such systems, ozone iscontinuously added to the water to replace any ozone that hasdecomposed, or to ozonate any fresh water that has been added to replaceozonated water removed from the system. A steady-state of ozonated wateris eventually reached based on the inlet and outlet flow rates, as wellas the efficiency of the ozonation flow path. However, at the start ofozonation, the level of dissolved ozone is low and gradually increasesuntil the steady-state is achieved.

There are a number of disadvantages with continuously recirculatingsystems. For example: they require energy to produce the constantlyrequired ozone; ozone is corrosive with some materials; and there may bea fluctuation in the level of dissolved ozone if a significant amount ofozonated water is removed from the tank.

In traditional ozonation systems, both continuously and non-continuouslyrecirculating systems, there is a delay between the start of theozonation and the delivery of the ozonated water. A user must wait forthe tank of water to be ozonated before the ozonated water can be used.In recirculating systems, starting the ozonation system and removingwater from the tank before the ozonation is finished results innon-ozonated water or water with a low level of ozone dissolved therein.In continuously recirculating systems, a user must still wait for thelevel of ozonation in the water to increase to a usable level. Duringthis time, the continuously recirculating system is either dischargingwater with low levels of ozone dissolved therein or not dischargingwater at all.

It is therefore desirable to provide an ozonation system that candispense ozonated water “on demand” without the need for a continuouslyrecirculating system, (i.e. an ozonation system that dispenses ozone viaa single pass through the ozonating flow path) thereby doing away withthe need for a holding tank.

Some ozonation systems use devices to separate, for example, water fromundissolved ozone gas. Such devices are generally known as “off-gas”units, “degassing” units, or “gas-liquid” separators. All such devicestake, as an input stream, a mixture of gas and liquid and provide, asseparate output streams, a degassed liquid and a separated gas. Thedegassed liquid can have gas dissolved therein, even though bubbles ofgas have been removed. Depending on the desired outlet stream, anoff-gas unit can be used to produce, for example, a humidified gasstream, a gas-enriched liquid stream, or a completely degassed liquid.

Under conditions where the flow rate of a liquid is not crucial, theliquid can be degassed simply by letting the liquid and gas naturallyseparate due to differences in density between the liquid and gas. Thisprocess can be accelerated by placing the gas-liquid mixture under anexternal vacuum. In this situation, the reduced solubility of the gas iscaused by the external vacuum, which encourages the gas to separate fromthe liquid in order to fill the vacuum.

Some known system use centrifugal separation to encourage the separationof gas from a gas-liquid mixture. In such systems, the degassing isachieved by the centrifugal forces on a liquid having a vortex flow. Thecentrifugal flow of liquid results in pressure differences in the liquidas a function of distance from the center axis of rotation. The lowdensity gas and gas-liquid mixture are collected in the low pressurezone along the center of rotation, while the high density liquid iscollected in the high pressure zone around the perimeter of rotation.

Increasing the flow rate in a given size of gas-liquid separatorincreases the centrifugal force in the vortex flow, resulting in a lowerpressure in the low pressure zone and a higher pressure in the highpressure zone. This increase in centrifugal force hastens the separationof gas from the liquid. However, higher flow rates also lead toincreased turbulence in the liquid flow as well as a lower residencetime in the gas-liquid separator. This increased turbulence and lowerresidence time discourage separation of gas from liquid and lead tobubbles entering the degassed liquid output stream.

It is desirable to provide an off-gas unit that can separate agas-liquid mixture into a degassed liquid and a separated gas at a highflow rate.

As discussed above, ozonated water can be used to sanitize items andsurfaces, and is an effective replacement to chemical cleaners.Residential/consumer and commercial water ozonation systems areavailable to provide such functionality.

One example of a consumer water ozonation system is described incommonly assigned United States Patent Application Publication No.US-2008-0190825-A1, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. Such a system can include a removable filter cartridge. Theremovable filter cartridge facilitates better ozonation of water by wayof a desiccant material provided therein to remove moisture, therebyachieving a higher concentration of ozone gas in the ozonated water.

Some cartridges and systems can include functionality to assist indetermining when the cartridge should be replaced. For example, thecartridge in the '825 publication referred to above can have a “window”to assist in determining when the cartridge should be replaced, based onan observed colour of desiccant material. Other systems can provide analarm or other indication when the cartridge reaches or approaches anend of life condition.

While different types of commercial ozonation systems or devices canboth use cartridges, the cartridges used in each type of device aretypically different from each other, and count usage in different ways,such as by cycles completed or by time used.

It is, therefore, desirable to provide a cartridge and ozonation systemthat enable use of the same cartridge in different types of ozonationdevices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present application to obviate or mitigate atleast one disadvantage of previous ozonation systems. In one aspect, asystem for providing an ozonated liquid is described. The systemcomprises a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet. The liquid inlet isarranged to continuously accept a liquid into the system at a desiredflow rate; the liquid outlet to dispense ozonated liquid out of thesystem, the ozonated liquid having an oxidation-reduction potential ofat least 450 mV due solely to ozone dissolved in the liquid, the liquidoutlet being in fluid communication with the liquid inlet and arrangedto dispense the ozonated liquid out of the system at the desired flowrate. The system also comprises a tank-less ozonation flow path which isadapted to ozonate the accepted liquid, producing the ozonated liquid tobe dispensed out of the system, the accepted liquid having a fluidresidence time in the ozonation flow path of less than about 5 minutesprior to being dispensed as the ozonated liquid.

In another aspect, a system for providing an ozonated liquid isdescribed. The system comprises a tank-less ozonation flow path having aliquid inlet and a liquid outlet. The liquid inlet is arranged tocontinuously accept a substantially unozonated liquid into the ozonationflow path at a desired flow rate; a liquid outlet to dispense ozonatedliquid out of the system, the ozonated liquid having anoxidation-reduction potential of at least 450 mV due solely to ozonedissolved in the liquid, the liquid outlet being in fluid communicationwith the liquid inlet and arranged to dispense the ozonated liquid outof the system at the desired flow rate. The tank-less ozonation flowpath is adapted to ozonate the accepted liquid, producing the ozonatedliquid to be dispensed out of the system, the accepted liquid having afluid residence time in the ozonation flow path of less than about 5minutes prior to being dispensed as the ozonated liquid.

The liquid can be accepted at an accepted pressure less than 110 psi.The ozonated liquid can be dispensed at a dispensing pressure which isdirectly dependent on the accepted pressure. The accepted pressure canbe between about 20 and about 100 psi, and the dispensing pressure canbe between about 20 and about 100 psi.

The ozonated liquid discharged from the system can have anoxidation-reduction potential of at least 650 millivolts. The fluidresidence time in the system can be less than 1 minute.

The ozonation flow path can comprise a liquid-gas mixer, in fluidcommunication with the liquid inlet, to mix the accepted liquid withgaseous ozone to produce a gaseous liquid; and a gas-liquid separator,in fluid communication with the liquid-gas mixer, to separate thegaseous liquid into degassed ozonated liquid and separated gaseousozone. The liquid-gas mixer can be a venturi for mixing the liquid withozone gas. The fluid residence time between the liquid-gas mixer and thegas-liquid separator can be between about 0.01 and 0.1 seconds. Inparticular aspects, the liquid inlet of the ozonation flow path can bethe liquid-gas mixer and the residence time of the ozonation flow pathcan be measured between the liquid-gas mixer and the liquid outlet.

The gas-liquid separator is for separating a gaseous liquid into adegassed liquid and a separated gas, the gaseous liquid comprisingbubbles of undissolved gas and a liquid, the degassed liquid comprisingdissolved gas. The gas-liquid separator can comprise a tubular memberhaving a side wall, and top and bottom end walls, the tubular memberhaving an upper portion and a lower portion; a gaseous liquid inlet forentry of the gaseous liquid, the inlet located in the lower portion ofthe tubular member and arranged to create a vortex of the gaseous liquidin the gas-liquid separator; a gas outlet located in the upper portionof the tubular member, the gas outlet arranged to vent the separated gasout of the gas-liquid separator; a liquid outlet for egress of thedegassed liquid from the lower portion of the gas-liquid separator; anda separating mixer positioned in the lower portion of the tubular memberand secured to the side wall of the tubular member.

The separating mixer can comprise an annular separating baffleconcentric with the tubular member and arranged to direct the flow ofthe degassed liquid towards the liquid outlet and to direct theseparated gas away from the liquid outlet, the separating baffle and theside wall defining an annular degassed liquid region therebetween; andan annular mixing baffle concentric with the annular separating baffle,the radius of the annular mixing baffle is smaller than the radius ofthe annular separating baffle.

The annular separating baffle and the annular mixing baffle can beconcentric and share a common center. The annular separating baffle canbe positioned in line with the liquid outlet. The annular degassedliquid region can be open at both a top end and a bottom end, thedegassed liquid flowable between the top end and the bottom end. Theliquid outlet can be for egress of the degassed liquid from the annulardegassed liquid region.

The gaseous liquid inlet can be positioned substantially tangential tothe side wall of the tubular member. The liquid outlet can be an annularaperture defined by the side wall or can be positioned substantiallytangential to the side wall of the tubular member.

The gas-liquid separator can alternatively comprise a tubular memberhaving a side wall, and top and bottom end walls, the tubular memberhaving an upper portion and a lower portion; a gaseous liquid inlet forentry of the gaseous liquid, the inlet located in the lower portion ofthe tubular member and arranged to create a vortex of the gaseous liquidin the gas-liquid separator; a gas outlet located in the upper portionof the tubular member, the gas outlet arranged to vent the separated gasout of the gas-liquid separator; an annular separating baffle positionedin the lower portion of the tubular member and secured to the side wallof the tubular member, the annular separating baffle arranged to directthe flow of the degassed liquid towards the liquid outlet and to directthe separated gas away from the liquid outlet, the annular separatingbaffle and the side wall defining an annular degassed liquid regiontherebetween which is open at both top and bottom ends, the degassedliquid flowable between the top and bottom ends; and a liquid outlet foregress of the degassed liquid from the annular degassed liquid region.

The annular separating baffle can be positioned in line with the liquidoutlet. The gaseous liquid inlet can be positioned substantiallytangential to the side wall of the tubular member. The liquid outlet canbe an annular aperture defined by the side wall. positionedsubstantially tangential to the side wall of the tubular member.

In an aspect, a gas-liquid separator is provided for separating agaseous liquid into a degassed liquid and a separated gas, the gaseousliquid comprising bubbles of undissolved gas, the degassed liquidcomprising dissolved gas.

The gas-liquid separator comprises a tubular member having a side wall,and top and bottom end walls, the tubular member having an upper portionand a lower portion; a gaseous liquid inlet for entry of the gaseousliquid, the inlet located in the lower portion of the tubular member andarranged to create a vortex of the gaseous liquid in the gas-liquidseparator; a gas outlet located in the upper portion of the tubularmember, the gas outlet arranged to vent the separated gas out of thegas-liquid separator; a separating mixer positioned in the lower portionof the tubular member and secured to the side wall of the tubularmember; and a liquid outlet for egress of the degassed liquid from thelower portion of the gas-liquid separator.

The separating mixer comprises an annular separating baffle concentricwith the tubular member and arranged to direct the flow of the degassedliquid towards the liquid outlet and to direct the separated gas awayfrom the liquid outlet, the separating baffle and the side wall definingan annular degassed liquid region therebetween; and an annular mixingbaffle concentric with the annular separating baffle, the radius of theannular mixing baffle is smaller than the radius of the annularseparating baffle.

The annular separating baffle and the annular mixing baffle can share acommon center. The annular separating baffle can be positioned in linewith the liquid outlet. The annular degassed liquid region can be openat both a top end and a bottom end, with the degassed liquid flowablebetween the top end and the bottom end. The annular degassed liquidregion can be for egress of the degassed liquid from the annulardegassed liquid region

The gaseous liquid inlet can be a tangential inlet. The liquid outletcan be an annular aperture defined by the side wall or a tangentialoutlet positioned in the side wall.

In another aspect, the separator comprises a tubular member having aside wall, and top and bottom end walls, the tubular member having anupper portion and a lower portion; a gaseous liquid inlet for entry ofthe gaseous liquid, the inlet located in the lower portion of thetubular member and arranged to create a vortex of the gaseous liquid inthe gas-liquid separator; a gas outlet located in the upper portion ofthe tubular member, the gas outlet arranged to vent the separated gasout of the gas-liquid separator; an annular separating baffle positionedin the lower portion of the tubular member and secured to the side wallof the tubular member, the annular separating baffle arranged to directthe flow of the degassed liquid towards the liquid outlet and to directthe separated gas away from the liquid outlet, the annular separatingbaffle and the side wall defining an annular degassed liquid regiontherebetween which is open at both top and bottom ends, the degassedliquid flowable between the top and bottom ends; and a liquid outlet foregress of the degassed liquid in the annular degassed liquid region.

The annular separating baffle can be positioned in line with the liquidoutlet. The gaseous liquid inlet can be a tangential inlet. The liquidoutlet can be an annular aperture defined by the side wall or atangential outlet positioned in the side wall.

In an aspect of the present application, a cartridge-enhanced watertreatment system is provided. The water treatment system includes acartridge; a first ozonation device of a first type including a firstdevice cycle count manager configured to signal the cartridge uponcompletion of an ozonation cycle of the first ozonation device withrespect to a first ozonation device cycle count condition; and a secondozonation device of a second type, the second type different from thefirst type, the second ozonation device including a second device cyclecount manager configured to signal the cartridge upon completion of anozonation cycle of the second ozonation device with respect to a secondozonation device cycle count condition; the cartridge being arranged forintegration and independent use with the first ozonation device and withthe second ozonation device, and including: an air inlet to receiveatmospheric air; a material to remove moisture and/or nitrogen from thereceived atmospheric air; an air outlet for interfacing with one of thefirst and second ozonation devices to provide dry and/or oxygen enrichedair to an ozone generator; a usage counter arranged to modify a storedusage count in response to receipt of a signal from the first or secondcycle count managers, and a device interface arranged to provide anexpiry indication indicating that the cartridge is no longer suitablefor further use, based on the stored usage count.

The first and second cycle count managers can each comprise a cyclememory arranged to keep track of partially completed cycles.

The cartridge can include a cartridge compatibility identifier; and thefirst and second ozonation devices can include: first and second devicecompatibility identifiers, respectively, and first and second devicecompatibility managers can be arranged to determine whether thecartridge is compatible with the first or second ozonation device,respectively, based on a comparison of the cartridge compatibilityidentifier with the first and second device compatibility identifiers,respectively.

The first and second device compatibility managers can determine thatthe cartridge is compatible with the first or second ozonation devicewhen the cartridge compatibility identifier is the same as the first orsecond ozonation device compatibility identifier, respectively.

The first and second device compatibility managers can determine thatthe cartridge is compatible with the first or second ozonation devicewhen the first or second ozonation device compatibility identifieridentifies a device class with which the cartridge compatibilityidentifier is compatible.

The cartridge can be compatible with a plurality of types of ozonationdevice of the identified device class. The usage counter can be reset inresponse to receipt of a usage counter reset signal.

The system can further include a usage counter reset manager, incommunication with the cartridge, arranged to send a usage counter resetsignal to reset the usage counter in the cartridge. The usage counterreset manager can be arranged to determine an expected life of a drieddesiccant material prior to sending the usage counter reset signal. Theusage counter reset manager can be arranged to provide a modified valuewith which the usage counter can be reset, the modified value beingbased on measured properties of the desiccant material.

The cartridge can be a desiccant cartridge that includes a material toremove moisture from the received atmospheric air.

The first ozonation device of a first type can be a water ozonationsystem that includes a liquid inlet arranged to continuously accept aliquid into the system at a desired flow rate; a liquid outlet todispense ozonated liquid out of the system, the ozonated liquid havingan oxidation-reduction potential of at least 450 mV due solely to ozonedissolved in the liquid, the liquid outlet being in fluid communicationwith the liquid inlet and arranged to dispense the ozonated liquid outof the system at the desired flow rate; a tank-less ozonation flow pathbetween the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet, the flow path adapted toozonate the accepted liquid, producing the ozonated liquid to bedispensed out of the system, the accepted liquid having a fluidresidence time in the ozonation flow path of less than 5 minutes priorto dispensing as the ozonated liquid; an ozone generator having an airinlet for interfacing with the air outlet of the cartridge and arrangedto provide generated ozone to the ozonation flow path. The secondozonation device of a second type can be a water ozonation system thatincludes a reservoir for containing and dispensing a liquid; an ozonegenerator having an air inlet for interfacing with the air outlet of thecartridge and arranged to provide generated ozone to a liquid-gas mixerfor increasing the level of oxidative properties in said liquid; acirculation flow path communicating with said reservoir and saidliquid-gas mixture to allow at least some of said liquid in saidreservoir to flow from said reservoir to said liquid-gas mixer and backto said reservoir.

In another aspect of the present application, a cartridge, arranged forintegration and use with first and second ozonation devices of differenttypes, is provided. The cartridge includes an air inlet to receiveatmospheric air; a material to remove moisture and/or nitrogen from thereceived atmospheric air; an air outlet for interfacing with one of thefirst and second ozonation devices to provide dry and/or oxygen enrichedair to an ozone generator; a usage counter arranged to modify a storedusage count in response to receipt of a first cycle completion signalreceived from the first ozonation device representing completion of anozonation cycle with respect to a first ozonation device cycle countcondition, and to modify the stored usage count in response to receiptof a second cycle completion signal received from the second ozonationdevice representing completion of an ozonation cycle with respect to asecond ozonation device cycle count condition; a device interfacearranged to provide an expiry indication indicating that the cartridgeis no longer suitable for further use based on the stored usage count.

In a further aspect of the present applicant, a method is provided ofremoving moisture from atmospheric air using a cartridge describedabove. The method includes receiving the atmospheric air from the airinlet; contacting the desiccant material with the received atmosphericair; providing dry air to an ozone generator through the dry air outlet;modifying the stored usage count in response to: (a) the first cyclecompletion signal received from the first ozonation device representingcompletion of an ozonation cycle with respect to a first ozonationdevice cycle count condition, or (b) the second cycle completion signalreceived from the second ozonation device representing completion of anozonation cycle with respect to a second ozonation device cycle countcondition; providing an expiry indication when the cartridge is nolonger suitable for further use based on the stored usage count.

The first and second cycle count managers can each comprise a cyclememory, and the method further can include keeping track of partiallycompleted cycles using the cycle memory.

The method can further include resetting the usage counter in responseto receipt of a usage counter reset signal.

The method can further include sending the usage counter reset signal bya usage counter reset manager in communication with the cartridge.

The method can further include determining, at the usage counter resetmanager, an expected life of a dried desiccant material prior to sendingthe usage counter reset signal.

The method can further include providing a modified value with which theusage counter can be reset, the modified value being based on measuredproperties of the desiccant material and being provided by the usagecounter reset manager

Other aspects and features of the present application will becomeapparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of thefollowing description of specific embodiments of the application inconjunction with the accompanying figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the present application will now be described, by way ofexample only, with reference to the attached Figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic of a holding tank-less ozonation system accordingto one embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is an cross-sectional view of a known gas-liquid separator;

FIG. 3 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a gas-liquid separatorusable in a holding tank-less ozonation system according to oneembodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a close-up, cross-sectional view of another embodiment of agas-liquid separator usable in a holding tank-less ozonation systemaccording to one embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a floor scrubber fitted with aholding tank-less ozonation system according to one embodiment of thepresent application;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a cartridge-enhanced water treatment systemincluding a first ozonation device, a second ozonation device, and acartridge arranged to interface with the first and second ozonationdevices according to an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 8A is a top front right perspective view of a cartridge accordingto an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 8B is an exploded, top front right, perspective view of a cartridgeaccording to an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 9 is a mechanical system diagram of an exemplary water ozonationsystem with which a cartridge according to an embodiment of the presentapplication can be used.

FIG. 10 is a back perspective view of a removable cartridge installed ina base unit of a water ozonation device according to an embodiment ofthe present application.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Generally, the present application provides a method and system forgenerating ozonated liquid. While the following description describesthe ozonation of water, it is appreciated that the principles of theapplication, which are demonstrated by the following embodiments, can beequally applied to the ozonation of other liquids (for example: organicsolvents, oils, mixtures of water and additives). It is appreciated thatadditives can affect the oxidation-reduction potential of ozonated waterand/or the stability of the ozonated water. It may, therefore, bedesirable to include such additives when producing ozonated water.Contemplated additives include, for example, acetic acid. Additionally,while the following description describes the separation of ozone fromwater, it is to be understood that the principles described herein,which are described in relation to particular embodiments, can beequally applied to the separation of other gases (for example: oxygen,nitrogen, hydrogen, chlorine, fluorine) from other liquids (for example:organic solvents, oils).

The present application describes a system which provides an ozonatedliquid. In one aspect, the system can comprises a liquid inlet arrangedto continuously accept a liquid into the system at a desired flow rate;a liquid outlet to dispense ozonated liquid out of the system, theozonated liquid having an oxidation-reduction potential of at least 450mV due solely to ozone dissolved in the liquid, the liquid outlet beingin fluid communication with the liquid inlet and arranged to dispensethe ozonated liquid out of the system at the desired flow rate. Thissystem has a tank-less ozonation flow path between the liquid inlet andthe liquid outlet, the flow path being adapted to ozonate the acceptedliquid, producing the ozonated liquid to be dispensed out of the system.The accepted liquid has a fluid residence time in the ozonation flowpath of less than 5 minutes prior to being dispensed as the ozonatedliquid.

In another aspect, the system can comprises a tank-less ozonation flowpath having a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, the liquid inletarranged to continuously accept a substantially unozonated liquid intothe ozonation flow path at a desired flow rate; the liquid outlet todispense ozonated liquid out of the system, the ozonated liquid havingan oxidation-reduction potential of at least 450 mV due solely to ozonedissolved in the liquid, the liquid outlet being in fluid communicationwith the liquid inlet and arranged to dispense the ozonated liquid outof the system at the desired flow rate. The tank-less ozonation flowpath is adapted to ozonate the accepted liquid, producing the ozonatedliquid to be dispensed out of the system. The accepted liquid has afluid residence time in the ozonation flow path of less than 5 minutesprior to being dispensed as the ozonated liquid.

Embodiments of the present application are non-recirculating systemshaving a holding tank-less ozonation flow path with a liquid inlet andliquid outlet. Such tank-less, non-recirculating systems accept liquidso long as liquid is being dispensed from the system, and dispenseliquid so long as the system is accepting liquid. Liquid is onlydispensed when more accepted liquid enters the system. In order todispense ozonated liquid, the accepting, dispensing and ozonating mustall occur at the same time.

One particular embodiment of a system according to the presentapplication is illustrated as element 10 in FIG. 1. The liquid inlet 12is arranged to accept water to be ozonated into the system. In theillustrated embodiment, the liquid inlet 12 accepting water into thesystem accepts liquid directly into the ozonation flow path. However, itis to be understood that it is not necessary for the liquid inlet 12 toaccept liquid into the ozonation system and that the ozonation flow pathcan accept liquid which has already been accepted by the ozonationsystem. The liquid inlet 12 continuously accepts the water as long asozonated water is being produced. Water flows at a desired flow rateinto venturi 14. Ozone gas provided by an ozone generator 16 is mixedwith the water in venturi 14.

The ozone-water mixture flows into gas-liquid separator 18, whichseparates the gas-liquid mixture into degassed ozonated water andseparated ozone gas. The separated ozone gas is destroyed in ozonedestructor 20 and oxygen gas is vented to the atmosphere. Degassedozonated water is provided to liquid outlet 22 by the gas-liquidseparator 18. Liquid outlet 22 dispenses ozonated liquid at the desiredflow rate (e.g. for use by an end user). The flow rate out of the liquidoutlet 22 is the same as the flow into the liquid inlet 12 since theflow in is directly dependent on the flow out and any liquid accepted bythe system must displace liquid within the system. It is appreciatedthat in a system having a tank, the flow in is not directly dependent onthe flow out and liquid could be dispensed from the tank even if noliquid was flowing into the system.

In the context of the present application, “directly dependent on” is tobe understood to mean that the ozonation flow path is connected suchthat changes to the accepted pressure result in changes to thedispensing pressure and, similarly, that changes to the inlet flow rateresult in changes to the dispensing flow rate. Changes to the acceptedpressure result in changes to the dispensing pressure since thecontemplated systems do not include any pressure regulating systems. Forexample, if the accepted pressure is initially 80 psi and the dispensingpressure is 60 psi, and the accepted pressure was dropped to 60 psi, thedispensing pressure would drop to 40 psi since the dispensing pressureis directly dependent on the accepted pressure. Likewise, changes to theinlet flow rate result in changes to the dispensing flow rate sincethere is no holding tank and accepted liquid displaces liquid already inthe system, resulting in dispensed liquid.

Ozonation systems according to embodiments of the present applicationcan also have the dispensing pressure be substantially equal to acceptedpressure. Substantially equal pressure is to be understood to mean thatthe dispensing pressure is about 60 psi less than the accepted pressure,and in particular embodiments is about 40 psi, about 30 psi, about 20psi or about 10 psi less than the accepted pressure.

Ozonation systems according to embodiments of the present applicationcan also have the dispensing flow rate be substantially equal to theaccepted flow rate. In particular embodiments of the ozonation systemaccording to the present application, the system can have a dosingsystem to add an additive to the accepted liquid, resulting in andispensing flow rate that is larger than the accepted flow rate. Inparticular embodiments of the ozonation system according to the presentapplication, the system can have a leak or other liquid outlet inadvance of the dispensing liquid outlet, resulting in an dispensing flowrate that is less than the accepted flow rate. Substantially equal flowrate is to be understood to mean that the dispensing flow rate isbetween about 80% and 120% of the accepted flow rate, and in particularembodiments is between about 90% and about 110%, about 95% and about105%, or about 99% and about 101% of the accepted flow rate.

Liquid-Gas Mixer.

Ozonation systems according to embodiments of the present applicationcan have a liquid-gas mixer for mixing the ozone and the liquid. In thesystem illustrated in FIG. 1, the liquid-gas mixer is venturi 14. Asdescribed above, the liquid-gas mixer 14 is in fluid communication withthe liquid inlet 12 and is arranged to dissolve ozone gas in the liquidto produce the ozonated liquid. Liquid-gas mixers are well known in theart, and include such mixers as venturi mixers. Briefly, a venturi mixeris a tube with a constricted flow path, which causes an increase in flowvelocity and a corresponding decrease in pressure. The decrease inpressure results in a pressure differential, which draws gas into theliquid.

Gas-Liquid Separator.

Contemplated systems can also have a gas-liquid separator in fluidcommunication with both the liquid gas-mixer and the liquid outlet. Thegas-liquid separator, shown as element 18 in the embodiment illustratedin FIG. 1, can be arranged to separate undissolved ozone gas from theozonated liquid.

In particular embodiments, the ozonation system according to the presentinvention includes a gas-liquid separator which can separate ozone fromwater at high flow rates. The gas-liquid separator can comprise atubular member; a gaseous liquid inlet for entry of the gaseous liquid,the inlet arranged to create a vortex of the gaseous liquid in thegas-liquid separator; a gas outlet arranged to vent the separated gasout of the gas-liquid separator; a separating mixer secured to thetubular member; and a liquid outlet for egress of the degassed liquidfrom the annular degassed liquid region.

The separating mixer can comprise an annular separating baffleconcentric with the tubular member and arranged to direct the flow ofthe degassed liquid towards the liquid outlet and to direct theseparated gas away from the liquid outlet, the separating baffle and theside wall of the tubular member defining an annular degassed liquidregion therebetween. The separating mixer can further comprise anannular mixing baffle concentric with the annular separating baffle, theradius of the annular mixing baffle being smaller than the radius of theannular separating baffle.

Previously known gas-liquid separators are illustrated in FIG. 2 andinclude gas-liquid inlet 110 for inducing vortex flow 112. The gaseousliquid injected via inlet 110 separates into separated gas and degassedliquid. The separated gas coalesces into bubbles 114 and is vented outof the gas-liquid separator via gas outlet 116. The degassed liquid isdispensed from the gas-liquid separator via degassed liquid outlet 118.

FIG. 3 illustrates one embodiment of a gas-liquid separator as describedherein. In use, gaseous liquid enters a tangentially positionedgas-liquid inlet 110, which is positioned in a lower portion 120 oftubular interior chamber 122. The gas-liquid inlet 110 induces a vortexflow 112 of gaseous liquid. The gaseous liquid is injected at a flowrate sufficient to induce a vortex flow 112 of the gaseous liquid withinthe interior chamber 122. Such a vortex flow 112 has a center ofrotation and a low-pressure zone located at the center of rotation. Thevortex flow 112 has a high-pressure zone around the periphery of thevortex flow 112, for example where the liquid contacts the tubularinterior chamber 122.

The vortex flow 112 of liquid first encounters mixing baffle 124, whichcreates turbulence in the vortex flow 112 of gaseous liquid, therebybreaking up bubbles and increasing the total surface area of thebubbles. This increase in surface area can enhance the dissolution ofthe gas into the liquid. A mixer, therefore, should be understood to bea turbulence enhancer which increases the amount of dissolved gas in thedegassed liquid. Mixing baffle 124 defines a plurality of apertures 126for fluid communication between the inner and outer regions defined bythe mixing baffle 124. The apertures 126 are illustrated as slotsextending axially along the central longitudinal axis. The slots can beevenly spaced around the baffle and equally spaced from each other.

In an embodiment of a gas-liquid separator according to the presentapplication, a mixer can also act to direct bubbles of separated ozonegas in to the upper portion of the tubular interior chamber, therebyensuring that the bubbles are directed to the gas outlet.

It is to be understood that, in a vortex flow, the pressure on a fluidelement is a function of the centrifugal force exerted on that fluidelement, which is a function of the velocity and the distance from thecentral longitudinal axis. The pressure is, therefore, lowest along thecenter of rotation (where the centrifugal force is smallest) and thepressure is greatest along the periphery of the vortex (where thecentrifugal force is largest). The low pressure zone expedites bubblesof undissolved gas coalescing together. Gas separates from the liquiddue to the vortex flow 112, coalesces and rises towards the upperportion 128 of the tubular interior chamber 122. The vortex flow 112 ofgaseous liquid eventually becomes a vortex flow of degassed liquid asthe degassed liquid separates from the separated gas.

The vortex flow 112 of liquid next encounters separating baffle 130,which is positioned in line with degassed liquid outlet 132. It isdesirable to prevent bubbles of gas from exiting the gas-liquidseparator through the degassed liquid outlet 132. In a situation ofvortex flow, where the degassed liquid outlet 132 is positioned in thehigh-pressure zone at the periphery of the vortex flow 112, bubbles ofgas can be swept into the degassed liquid outlet 132 before theycoalesce in the low pressure zone. In order to direct bubbles of gasaway from the degassed liquid outlet 132, devices as described hereinhave a separating baffle 130 positioned in line with the degassed liquidoutlet 132. Separating baffle 130 can be positioned to create a thinslit between the side wall and baffle, the thin slit for directing thedegassed liquid to the degassed liquid outlet 132 and for trappingbubbles of gas that have not coalesced in the upper portion 128 of thetubular interior chamber 122. In an embodiment according to the presentapplication, the separating baffle can be co-axial to the degassedliquid outlet 132.

Degassed liquid outlet 132 is positioned at the periphery of the vortex,in the high-pressure zone, in order to provide egress for liquid whichhas been degassed. The separating baffle 130 directs separated gas awayfrom the degassed liquid outlet 132 and degassed liquid towards degassedliquid outlet 132. The combination of mixing baffle 124 and separatingbaffle 130 are one embodiment of separating mixer 134. It is to beunderstood that a separating mixer enhances the turbulence in a fluid,increasing the amount of dissolved gas in the degassed liquid, anddirects separated gas away from the liquid outlet while directing thedegassed liquid towards the liquid outlet.

The degassed liquid outlet 132 is positioned above the gas-liquid inlet110 and below gas outlet (not shown). The liquid outlet 132 accepts thedegassed fluid from the high-pressure zone and allows the degassed fluidto flow out of the interior chamber 122. The degassed liquid outlet 132is understood to be properly positioned when it is sufficiently far awayfrom both the gaseous liquid inlet 110 and the gas outlet that neitherthe gaseous liquid nor the separated gas exits via the degassed liquidoutlet during conditions of vortex flow. It can also be desirable toposition the degassed liquid outlet 132 close to the gaseous liquidinlet 110 and the gas outlet so that the gas-liquid separator does notbecome overly large. In this manner, the gas-liquid separator can be assmall as possible without compromising the effectiveness of thegas-liquid separator.

The separating baffle 130 and side wall of the interior chamber 122define a degassed liquid region 136 therebetween. The separating baffle130 is spaced apart from the side wall. The degassed liquid region 136is open at the top and bottom ends, and liquid can flow through thedegassed liquid region 136 between the top and bottom ends. FIG. 3illustrates the liquid outlet 132 as an annular aperture defined by sidewalls of the interior chamber 122. The liquid outlet 132 leads tocollecting outlet 138, which provides a flow of the degassed liquid.

Without being bound by theory, it is believed that in the embodimentillustrated in FIG. 3, liquid in the upper portion 128 of the tubularinterior chamber 122 has a higher ORP value as it has had a longercontact time with the ozone gas. It is further believed that this liquidcan flow into the degassed liquid outlet 132 via the open top end of thedegassed liquid region 136 without impediment. In contrast, in agas-liquid separator having a degassed liquid region with a closed topend, it is believed that liquid in the upper portion 128 of the tubularinterior chamber 122 would have to flow into the degassed liquid outlet132 by first flowing down the center area, against the direction of flowof the remaining liquid.

One possible arrangement for securing both the mixing baffle 124 and theseparating baffle 130 to the side wall is via holder 140, which engagesthe side wall and the top ends of both the mixing baffle 124 and theseparating baffle 130 so that none of the holder 140, mixing baffle 124and separating baffle 130 disengage from the side wall when thegas-liquid separator is subjected to vortex flow 112.

Holder 140 and the side wall of the tubular chamber 122 definesapertures 142 through which fluid can flow into or out of the annulardegassed liquid region 126 and further defines at least one centeropening through which the gaseous liquid and bubbles can flow. Holder140, mixing baffle 136 and separating baffle 122 illustrate oneembodiment of a separating mixer 134 secured to the side wall.

FIG. 4 is a view along line 4-4 of FIG. 3. FIG. 4 shows the annulardegassing liquid region 136, the mixing baffle 124 and the apertures 126defined therein. FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the mixing baffle 124 as beingpositioned concentrically with separating baffle 130 with the separatingbaffle 130 having a larger radius than the mixing baffle 124. That is tosay that the separating baffle and tubular interior chamber share acommon longitudinal axis.

Although FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the separating baffle 124 and mixingbaffle 130 as having a common center, it is to be understood that theywould still be “positioned concentrically” as long as the longitudinalaxis is shared, even if the mixing baffle 124 is positioned below theseparating baffle 130 and they no longer share a common center.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the degassed liquid outlet 132 can be asubstantially annular aperture defined by the side walls of thesubstantially tubular interior chamber 122. In other embodiments, thedegassed liquid outlet 132 can be a plurality of apertures defined bythe side walls of the chamber. In yet other embodiments, the degassedliquid outlet can be a tangential outlet in the side wall. The totalcross-sectional area of the degassed liquid outlet 132 can be equal toor slightly larger than the cross-sectional area of the gas-liquid inlet110. For example, if the cross-sectional area of the gas-liquid inlet110 is 78.5 mm² (e.g. a tube having a radius of 5 mm), then the degassedliquid outlet 132 can be an annular aperture having a vertical height of0.5 mm if the substantially tubular interior chamber 122 has a radius of25 mm (area=2πrh).

In embodiments where the degassed liquid outlet is an annular aperturedefined by the side walls or a plurality of apertures defined by theside walls, the separating baffle can be annular in shape and define anannular degassed liquid region (as illustrated by element 136 in FIG. 3)between the separating baffle 130 and the side wall of the substantiallytubular chamber 122. The cross-sectional area of the annular degassedliquid region 136, measured as the area between the separating baffle130 and the side wall when viewed along the longitudinal axis of theinterior chamber, can be 1.5× to 2.5× the cross-sectional area of theliquid-gas inlet 110 and/or the degassed liquid outlet 132.

In embodiments where the degassed liquid outlet is a tangential outletin the side wall, the separating baffle can be an annular baffle, one ormore than one ribs or deflecting guides extending from the side or wallof the substantially tubular chamber, or the like.

Another embodiment of a gas-liquid separator as described herein isillustrated in FIG. 5. As discussed with regard to the embodimentillustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, gaseous liquid enters a tangentiallypositioned gas-liquid inlet 110, which is positioned in a lower portion120 of tubular interior chamber 122. The gas-liquid inlet 110 induces avortex flow 112 of gaseous liquid. The gaseous liquid is injected at aflow rate sufficient to induce a vortex flow 112 of the gaseous liquidwithin the interior chamber 122. Such a vortex flow 112 has a center ofrotation and a low-pressure zone located at the center of rotation. Thevortex flow 112 has a high-pressure zone around the periphery of thevortex flow 112, for example where the liquid contacts the tubularinterior chamber 122.

The vortex flow 112 of liquid encounters separating baffle 130, which ispositioned in line with degassed liquid outlet 132. Separating baffle130 and the side wall of the tubular chamber 122 define degassed liquidregion 136. As discussed above, degassed liquid region is open at thetop and bottom ends, and liquid can flow through the degassed liquidregion 136 between the top and bottom ends.

As discussed previously, it is desirable to prevent bubbles of gas fromexiting the gas-liquid separator through the degassed liquid outlet 132.In a situation of vortex flow, where the degassed liquid outlet 132 ispositioned in the high-pressure zone at the periphery of the vortex flow112, bubbles of gas can be swept into the degassed liquid outlet 132before they coalesce in the low pressure zone. In order to directbubbles of gas away from the degassed liquid outlet 132, devices asdescribed herein have a separating baffle 130 positioned in line withthe degassed liquid outlet 132. The liquid outlet 132 leads tocollecting outlet 138, which provides a flow of the degassed liquid.

As discussed with regard to the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4,the separated gas coalesces in the low-pressure zone to form bubbles,which further coalesce, leading to accumulation of the separated gas.The coalesced bubbles rise into the upper portion 128 of the interiorchamber 122 and exit out of separated gas outlet 144. The separated gasoutlet 144 allows the gas to escape the interior chamber 122 and is,therefore, positioned in the upper portion 128 of the interior chamber,where the separated gas would accumulate when the gas-liquid separatoris use.

The gas-liquid separator can have a float (not shown) positioned in theinterior chamber 122. When in use, the float is pushed up by the liquidand closes off the separated gas outlet 144. Separated gas accumulatesand once sufficient gas collected, the float is displaced and separatedgas outlet 144 is opened, allowing the collected gas to escape out ofthe separated gas outlet 144. Once the separated gas has been vented,the float rises and again close off the separated gas outlet 144. Thisallows the gas-liquid separator to maintain a relatively constantpressure within the interior chamber 122.

It is to be understood that a mixture of gas and liquid is injected intoa gas-liquid separator. This mixture of gas and liquid includes bubblesof gas mixed in with the liquid. In the context of the presentapplication, such a mixture is termed a “gaseous liquid”. Inside thegas-liquid separator, the gaseous liquid is separated into a “degassedliquid” and “separated gas”.

In particular embodiments as described herein, the gas-liquid separatorcan promote dissolving the gas into the liquid. In particularembodiments as described herein, the gas-liquid separator can promotevaporizing or otherwise adding liquid to the gas. It is, therefore, tobe understood that the degassed liquid can have gas dissolved therein,and/or the separated gas can have liquid added thereto.

The term “degassed liquid” is, however, understood to represent liquidsubstantially lacking bubbles therein, even if the liquid has a gasdissolved therein. The term “separated gas” is to be understood to bethe gas when it has substantially coalesced together, even if the gashas liquid added thereto.

It is to be understood that devices, as described herein, separate gasand liquid at high flow rates. It is to be understood that the term“high flow rate”, when used in the context of the overall flow capacityof a gas-liquid separator as described herein, would mean a flow rate ofgreater than four volumes per minute, where one volume is equal to thevolume of the gas-liquid separator.

Gas-liquid separators, as described herein, generally operate in asubstantially vertical orientation, with a gaseous liquid inlet streamentering a lower portion of the device, separated gas exiting the devicevia a separated gas outlet in an upper portion of the device, anddegassed liquid exiting the device via a degassed liquid outletpositioned between the gas-liquid inlet and the separated gas outlet.

The terms “upper” and “lower” are understood to refer to relativeportions of the device when the device is positioned as it would be whenit is in use. The term “lower portion” refers to the portion of thegas-liquid separator which through in which gaseous liquid and degassedliquid flow. The term “upper portion” refers to the portion of thegas-liquid separator in which the separated gas is collected beforebeing vented out of the separator. In particular embodiments, the lowerportion is conical or frustoconical with a half angle between about 5and 7 degrees.

As illustrated in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the gas-liquid inlet 110 can bepositioned substantially tangential to the interior chamber 122.However, it is to be understood that vortex flow 112 can be induced bymethods other than the tangential entry of the gaseous liquid. Forexample, a gaseous liquid inlet can be positioned coaxial to the centrallongitudinal axis if the inlet includes a flow-deflection component todeflect axially inflowing liquid so that the desired vortex flow isinduced.

One example of a flow-deflection component is a rotation-symmetricalbase body element as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,967. This flowdeflection component includes deflection vanes, which are curved inplanes perpendicular relative to the longitudinal axis of the chamber,to direct the axially inflowing water to form the desired vortex flow.Additionally, it is to be understood that vortex flow can be inducedthrough mechanical methods, such as by the positioning of a motor-drivenpaddle in the substantially tubular chamber, where the motor-drivenpaddle drives vortex flow through physical displacement of the liquid.

In view of the desire to create a vortex flow inside the interiorchamber, the term “substantially tubular interior chamber” is to beunderstood to mean a chamber that is shaped to encourage, not deter, avortex flow. A chamber that deters a vortex flow may, for example, havea substantially square or rectangular horizontal cross-section since theside walls would discourage the flow of liquid circularly around theinterior chamber. In contrast, a chamber that encourages a vortex flowcould, for example, have a substantially oval or circular horizontalcross-section since the side wall(s) would direct the flow of liquidaround the interior chamber. It is understood, however, that chamberswith square or rectangular cross-sections can include other featuresthat encourage vortex flow. In such situations, it is to be understoodthat the term “substantially tubular interior chamber” would encompassthose chambers.

Ozone Source.

Ozone gas can be provided to the liquid-gas mixer (e.g. venturi 14 inFIG. 1) from a number of different sources. For example, a coronadischarge system can be used to generate and provide the ozone gas. Acorona discharge system uses an electrode with a high potential andtakes oxygen gas and passes a current through the gas so as to ionizethe gas and create a plasma around the electrode. The ionized gasrecombines with oxygen to form ozone. The oxygen gas used in a coronadischarge system can be oxygen from the air or from another oxygensource, for example the output from an oxygen concentrator. If air isused to generate ozone gas, a higher concentration of ozone can beachieved by reducing the amount of moisture in the provided air and/orincreasing the concentration of oxygen (for example by removingnitrogen) in the provided air. Reducing the amount of moisture orincreasing the concentration of oxygen can be achieved, for example, byusing a removable cartridge, as described below. Corona dischargesystems can use sustained ionization or intermittent ionization togenerate ozone. Corona discharge typically uses two asymmetricelectrodes: a highly curved electrode (e.g. tip of a needle or smalldiameter wire) and an electrode with a low curvature (e.g. a plate orground). Coronas may be positive or negative, depending on the polarityof the voltage on the highly curved electrode. In particularembodiments, a negative corona discharge system is used. In someembodiments of known corona discharge systems, as much as 10 grams ofozone per hour can be provided.

Ozone Destructor.

Systems according to the present application may also include an ozonedestruction assembly, or “ozone destructor”, as illustrated by element20 in FIG. 1. Ozone destructors are known in the art. Briefly, the ozonedestruction assembly can include a gas inlet for accepting ozone gasfrom the gas-liquid separator 18. Ozone gas can be directed from the gasinlet to a destruction chamber with a catalyst for accelerating thedecomposition of ozone into oxygen. The decomposition can be furtheraccelerated by heating the destruction chamber and/or the ozone gas tobe destroyed to an elevated temperature. In particular embodiments ofthe ozone destruction assembly, the catalyst is manganese dioxide oractivated carbon. The resulting oxygen gas produced from the destructionof the ozone gas can be discharged to the atmosphere via an oxygenoutlet.

Scrubber/Extractor.

The system for providing ozonated liquid according to the presentapplication can be adapted or retrofitted to a mobile floor scrubber orextractor. Scrubbers and extractors are floor cleaners which eject acleaning solution from a reservoir of clean liquid onto the floor andthen remove the solution by vacuuming it into a reservoir of dirtyliquid. Scrubbers and extractors are typically used in hospitals, hotelsor other commercial or industrial settings.

When adapted to scrubbers or extractors, the contemplated system takeswater from the clean reservoir as the liquid to be ozonated, passes thewater through the ozonation flow path, and ejects the ozonated water asthe cleaning solution. Used ozonated water vacuumed from the floor isthen stored in a dirty reservoir until the scrubber or extractor isemptied.

One embodiment of a scrubber 210 is illustrated in FIG. 6. The scrubber210 has a clean reservoir 212 holding water to be ozonated 214. Thewater to be ozonated 214 passes through inlet 216 in order to enter theozonation flow path. The water flows at a desired flow rate throughventuri 218. Venturi 218 mixes the water with ozone produced in ozonegenerator 220 to provide an ozone-water mixture, which flows throughgas-liquid separator 222. The gas-liquid separator 222 separates themixture into gaseous ozone and ozonated water. The gaseous ozone passesthrough ozone destructor 224 before being vented as oxygen. The ozonatedwater passes through outlet 226 as it leaves the ozonation flow path tobe used by the scrubber as the cleaning solution. The scrubber 210 caninclude scrubbing brushes 228 which use the ozonated water to scrub thefloor, resulting in dirty ozonated water. The dirty ozonated water 230is sucked into dirty reservoir 232 via vacuum inlet 234.

In particular embodiments, the system can be adapted to interface with acommercially available scrubber or extractor. In such situations, it isdesirable to ozonate water after it leaves the clean reservoir, insteadof ozonating all of the water in the clean reservoir as a recirculatingozonating system would do. To achieve this, a system according to thepresent application can be installed downstream from the clean reservoirand upstream from the scrubbing brushes. Installing the system in a hoseconnecting the clean reservoir and scrubbing brushes allows the systemto provide ozonated water on demand.

Ozonation.

In ozonation systems according to embodiments of the presentapplication, since the ozonation flow path is non-recirculating, theliquid passes through the ozonation flow path only once before beingdispensed from the liquid outlet. The ozonation flow path must,therefore, dissolve sufficient ozone in the liquid in a single pass toprovide the ozonated liquid.

In particular embodiments of the ozonation system according to thepresent application, the liquid accepted by the ozonation flow path issubstantially unozonated. “Substantially unozonated” is to be understoodto mean that the accepted liquid does not exceed a threshold value. Inparticular embodiments, the threshold value can be an ORP value of about250 millivolts (mV), preferably about 150 and more preferably about 50mV. It is appreciated that the threshold value can alternatively bemeasured in ppm of dissolved ozone, and the threshold value can be about0.1, preferably about 0.05, more preferably about 0.02 and even morepreferably about 0.01 ppm of dissolved ozone.

For example, an ozonation flow path according to the present applicationcan take an accepted liquid having 0 ppm dissolved ozone and an ORP of 0mV and, passing the fluid through the ozonation flow path only once,dispense an ozonated liquid having at least about 8 ppm ozone and/or anORP due to the dissolved ozone of at least about 900 mV. A similar finalamount of dissolved ozone and/or a final ORP value can be observed inthe dispensed ozonated liquid when the accepted liquid already has anon-zero amount of dissolved ozone and/or a non-zero ORP.

It is appreciated that “ozonated liquid” can generally refer to liquidwith any amount of ozone dissolved therein. However, in the context ofthe present application, when the liquid is water or a water-additivemixture, the term “ozonated liquid” is to be understood to be liquidthat has sufficient ozone dissolved therein that the oxidation-reductionpotential (ORP), solely due to the dissolved ozone, is at least about450 mV.

In particular embodiments, the ORP solely due to the dissolved ozone isat least about 600, 750, 800, 850, 900, 950, 1000, 1050, 1100 or 1150mV. It is appreciated that an alternative definition for “ozonatedliquid” according to another embodiment is a liquid that has sufficientozone dissolved therein to reach a concentration of least 3 parts permillion (ppm), and preferably at least 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 ppm.

Oxidation-reduction potential is a measure of disinfectant levels inwater systems, independent of the oxidant (e.g. ozone, chlorine,peroxide, peroxyacetic acid). It is generally accepted that liquids withORP values of 650 to 700 mV kill bacteria within a few seconds. Yeastand other fungi can be killed with such a liquid upon contact for a fewminutes. Liquids with an ORP value of 450 mV are termed “sanitizingliquids”. Liquids with an ORP value of 600 mV are termed “disinfectingliquids”. Liquids with an ORP value of 800 mV are termed “sterilizingliquids”.

An ORP value “due solely to dissolved ozone” is to be understood to meanthat the ORP is a measure of the oxidation potential of the dissolvedozone and does not take into account the oxidation and/or reductionpotential of other additional components of the liquid. For example,chlorine dissolved in water has an oxidation potential. Adding ozone tothe chlorinated water would increase the ORP. In this example, the ORPvalue “due solely to dissolved ozone” corresponds to the ORP value ofthe water if it was not chlorinated, regardless of the ORP value of theozonated and chlorinated water.

In contrast to holding tank-less systems according to the presentapplication, ozonation systems having a recirculating ozonation flowpath only dissolve a small amount of ozone every time the liquid travelsthrough the recirculating flow path. Repeatedly recirculating the liquidadds a small amount of ozone every time the liquid is recirculated,eventually resulting in a larger amount of dissolved ozone and higherORP value.

Pressure.

Ozonation systems according to the present application can be connectedto a municipal water supply. Typical municipal water supplies providewater at a pressure between approximately 20 psi and approximately 60psi. An ozonation system according to the present application acceptswater from the municipal water supply or from another water source (forexample from a pressurized holding tank). In some instances, for exampleif water is accepted from a pressurized tank, water may be provided atpressures as high as 80 or 100 psi. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1,the accepted water enters the liquid inlet 12 at the desired flow rateand accepted pressure and travels through the ozonation flow path, whichdoes not include any pressure regulation systems, for example pressurereducing valves or pressure pumps. In an embodiment, the ozonated waterdispensed from the system has a dispensing pressure that is directlydependent on the accepted pressure.

Flow Rate.

The accepted water flows into the liquid inlet of the ozonation flow ata desired flow rate, which is a function of the water pressure andcross-sectional area of the liquid inlet. The desired flow ratetypically ranges from 3 to 10 liters per minute, but can be as high asabout 38 liters per minute. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, theaccepted water enters the liquid inlet 12 at the desired flow rate andaccepted pressure and travels through the ozonation flow path. In anembodiment, the flow rate of the ozonated water dispensed from thesystem is the same as the flow rate accepted by the system.

Residence Time.

A system with a “holding tank” is to be understood to be a system with areservoir, for example a vessel, tank, pipe, pool, drum or any othercontainer, for storing, accumulating or saving liquid until it isneeded. A systems that is “holding tank-less” is to be understood to bea system that does not store, accumulate or save liquid until it isneeded. In such a holding tank-less system, liquid would be acceptedinto the system, flow through the flow path, and be dispensed from thesystem without being placed in a reservoir.

Since the ozonation flow path does not have a holding tank for producingozonated liquid on a recirculating basis, the overall volume of thesystem is small in comparison to the flow rate of dispensed ozonatedliquid. The ratio between volume and flow rate is understood to be ameasure of the average fluid residence time of the liquid in theozonation flow path.

The fluid residence time of a system is an expression of how long ittakes a fluid element to move through a volume which is in equilibrium.It is to be understood that fluid residence time is a measure of theresidence time of the liquid in that volume. It is the average time afluid element spends within a specified region of space, such as areservoir. In a well-mixed system with all fluid elements inequilibrium, residence time can be calculated by dividing the volume inquestion by the volumetric flow rate of the liquid. Embodiments of thepresent application have an average fluid residence time of the liquidin the ozonation flow path of less than about 5 minutes. In otherparticular embodiments, the average fluid residence time is less thanabout 1, about 0.7 or about 0.05 minutes.

In particular embodiments of the ozonation system according to thepresent application, the ozonation system has a liquid inlet and aliquid outlet, with the ozonation flow path therebetween. In otherembodiments, the ozonation system according to the present applicationincludes ozonation flow path with a liquid inlet and liquid outlet.

For example, in one embodiment, the liquid inlet can correspond to thenozzle which accepts liquid into the ozonation system and the fluidresidence time is measured from the nozzle to the liquid outlet whichdispenses ozonated liquid from the ozonation system. In anotherparticular embodiment, the liquid inlet corresponds to the liquid-gasmixer and the fluid residence time is measured from the liquid-gas mixerto the liquid outlet which dispenses ozonated liquid from the ozonationsystem.

In one particular embodiment of an ozonation flow path according to thepresent application, a venturi mixer is joined to a gas-liquid separatorby 3″ of ⅜″ tubing. In such an embodiment, and at average flow rates,the average residence time between the venturi mixer and the gas-liquidseparator is in the range of about 0.01 and about 0.1 seconds. In suchan embodiment, the average residence time in the ozonation flow path canbe less than about 0.7 or less than about 0.05 minutes, depending on theflow rate of the liquid.

Cartridge and Usage Tracking.

As discussed, water ozonation devices (such as a holding tank-less waterozonation system of the present application) can optionally use aremovable filter cartridge when the ozonation device includes an ozonesource such as, for example, a corona discharge system. The removablefilter cartridge can be used to increase the concentration of ozonegenerated by the corona discharge system by reducing the amount ofmoisture in the provided air and/or increasing the concentration ofoxygen (for example by removing nitrogen) in the air provided to thecorona discharge system.

The cartridge can be arranged for integration and use with first andsecond ozonation devices, and can include a usage counter to increment ausage count in response to a received signal from an ozonation device,and a device interface to provide an expiry indication when thecartridge is no longer suitable for use. The devices count usage can bebased on different first and second cycle count conditions. The samecartridge can be used in different devices, such as, for example, aconsumer water ozonation device (such as described in U.S. Pat. No.6,964,739, incorporated herein by reference), a high capacity commercialwater ozonation device, a large volume ozone sprayer, a holdingtank-less water ozonation device, etc. The devices can include logic todisable usage of the system after the cartridge has reached apredetermined usage condition. Compatibility identifiers can be used inthe cartridge and devices to restrict use of the cartridge with certaindevices.

While some known systems offer a limited type of usage tracking orcounting, embodiments of the present application count usage of acartridge in a way that permits the cartridge to be used, and re-used,in systems having a different type, or which measure usage cyclesdifferently. This can be described as providing universal usage countingin a water treatment system having a plurality of ozonation deviceswhich count usage according to different cycle completion conditions.

In an embodiment, the present application provides a cartridge-enhancedwater treatment system including a cartridge and first and secondozonation devices. The first and second ozonation devices can be thesame or different. For example, the first and second ozonation devicescan be first and second holding tank-less ozonation devices; or thefirst ozonation device can be a holding tank-less ozonation device andthe second ozonation device can be a residential ozonation device (suchas described in United States Patent Application Publication No.US-2008-0190825-A1).

The first ozonation device is of a first type, and includes a firstdevice cycle count manager configured to signal the cartridge uponcompletion of an ozonation cycle of the first ozonation device withrespect to a first ozonation device cycle count condition. The secondozonation device is of a second type, the second type being differentfrom the first type. The second ozonation device includes a seconddevice cycle count manager configured to signal the cartridge uponcompletion of an ozonation cycle of the second ozonation device withrespect to a second ozonation device cycle count condition.

In one embodiment, the cartridge is a desiccant cartridge, is arrangedfor integration and independent use with both the first ozonation deviceand the second ozonation device, and includes: an air inlet to receiveatmospheric air, a desiccant material to remove moisture, and a dry airoutlet for interfacing with one of the first and second ozonationdevices to provide dry air to an ozone generator. In another embodiment,the cartridge is a nitrogen-removing cartridge, is arranged forintegration and independent use with both the first ozonation device andthe second ozonation device, and includes: an air inlet to receiveatmospheric air, a material to remove nitrogen gas from the air so as toincrease the concentration of oxygen in the air, and an oxygen-enrichedair outlet for interfacing with one of the first and second ozonationdevices to provide oxygen-enriched air to an ozone generator. In yetanother embodiment, the cartridge is both a nitrogen-removing anddesiccant cartridge, and includes both a desiccant material to removemoisture and a material to remove nitrogen gas from the received air.

The cartridge further includes a usage counter arranged to modify astored usage count in response to receipt of a signal from the first orsecond cycle count manager, and a device interface arranged to providean expiry indication indicating that the cartridge is no longer suitablefor further use, based on the stored usage count. The cartridge canoptionally include a chronological counter arranged to modify a storedtime count. The device interface in such a cartridge can provide anexpiry indication based on the stored usage count or the stored timecount. In a cartridge that includes a chronological counter, thecartridge could be stored in a vacuum packed container and, once thecontainer is opened and the cartridge exposed to atmospheric air, thechronological counter could be started by the removal of a tab. Removalof the tab could, for example, engage a battery with dedicated circuitryfor modifying the stored time count.

The first and/or second cycle count managers can comprise a cycle memoryarranged to keep track of partially completed cycles.

In an example, the cartridge includes a cartridge compatibilityidentifier, and the first and second ozonation devices include first andsecond device compatibility identifiers, respectively. First and seconddevice compatibility managers are arranged to determine whether thecartridge is compatible with the first or second ozonation device,respectively, based on a comparison of the cartridge compatibilityidentifier with the first and second device compatibility identifiers,respectively.

The first and second device compatibility managers can determine thatthe cartridge is compatible with the first or second ozonation devicewhen the cartridge compatibility identifier is the same as the first orsecond ozonation device compatibility identifier, respectively.Therefore, in an example, if the cartridge is compatible with the firstand second ozonation devices, all three have the same compatibilityidentifier.

The first and second device compatibility managers can determine thatthe cartridge is compatible with the first or second ozonation devicewhen the first or second ozonation device compatibility identifieridentifies a device class with which the cartridge compatibilityidentifier is compatible. The cartridge can then be compatible with aplurality of types of ozonation device of the identified device class.

The usage counter (with the optional chronological counter) in thecartridge can be reset in response to receipt of a usage and/orchronological counter reset signal. The system can further include ausage counter reset manager (with an optional chronological counterreset manager), in communication with the cartridge, arranged to send ausage and/or chronological counter reset signal to reset the usageand/or chronological counter in the cartridge. The usage counter resetmanager and/or chronological counter reset manager can be arranged todetermine an expected life of a dried desiccant material and/or anitrogen-removing material prior to sending the usage and/orchronological counter reset signal. The usage and/or chronologicalcounter reset managers can be arranged to provide a modified value withwhich the usage and/or chronological counters can be reset, the modifiedvalue being based on measured properties of the desiccant materialand/or the nitrogen-removing material.

In another embodiment, the present invention provides a cartridgearranged for integration and use with first and second ozonation devicesof different types, and including: an air inlet to receive atmosphericair; a desiccant and/or nitrogen removing material to remove moistureand/or nitrogen; an air outlet for interfacing with one of the first andsecond ozonation devices to provide dry and/or oxygen enriched air to anozone generator; and a usage and/or chronological counter. The usagecounter (with an optional chronological counter) is arranged to modify astored usage count in response to receipt of a first cycle completionsignal received from the first ozonation device representing completionof an ozonation cycle with respect to a first ozonation device cyclecount condition. The usage counter is also arranged to modify the storedusage count in response to receipt of a second cycle completion signalreceived from the second ozonation device representing completion of anozonation cycle with respect to a second ozonation device cycle countcondition. The cartridge also includes a device interface arranged toprovide an expiry indication indicating that the cartridge is no longersuitable for further use based on the stored usage count. In cartridgeswith the optional chronological counter, the chronological counter isarranged to modify a stored time count. The device interface in such acartridge can provide an expiry indication based on the stored usagecount or the stored time count. In a cartridge that includes achronological counter, the cartridge could be stored in a vacuum packedcontainer and, once the container is opened and the cartridge exposed toatmospheric air, the chronological counter could be started by theremoval of a tab. Removal of the tab could, for example, engage abattery with dedicated circuitry for modifying the stored time count.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a cartridge-enhanced water treatment system300 including a first ozonation device 310, a second ozonation device320 and a cartridge 330. The first ozonation device 310 includes a cyclecount manager 312, and optionally includes a compatibility identifier314, and a compatibility manager 316.

The cycle count manager 312 is configured to signal the cartridge 330upon completion of an ozonation cycle of the first ozonation device 310.The cycle count manager 312 is particularly configured with respect to afirst ozonation device cycle count condition, such as a cycle countthreshold. For example, if the first ozonation device 310 is a highcapacity ozonation device or system, the cycle count manager 312 can beconfigured to signal the cartridge 330 after 45 seconds of operation. Inthis case, the first ozonation device cycle count condition, orthreshold, is 45 seconds of operation.

The cycle count manager 312 can include a cycle memory, to keep track ofpartially completed cycles. For example, suppose an ozonation device hasa cycle count threshold of 45 seconds. If the ozonation device runs for30 seconds and the device is stopped, the cycle count manager memorywill store the partially completed cycle information. When the ozonationdevice next starts, it calculates after 15 seconds of operation that acycle has been completed, based on the partially completed cycleinformation.

In an embodiment, the cycle count manager 312 maintains the cycle memoryvalue when the cartridge is removed from a first ozonation device of afirst type and is installed in a second ozonation device of the sametype. For example, if the two ozonation devices use the same ozonationdevice cycle count condition, the cycle memory value is maintained. Ifthe cartridge is subsequently installed on an ozonation device of adifferent type, or which uses a different ozonation device cycle countcondition, the cycle memory can be converted based on a relationshipbetween the two conditions, or can be cleared if such conversion cannotbe completed.

The compatibility identifier 314 is an identifier that can be usedwithin a cartridge-enhanced water treatment system to identifycompatible cartridges and water ozonation devices. The identifier 314can also be referred to as a first device compatibility identifier. Thecompatibility manager 316 determines whether a cartridge is compatiblewith the first ozonation device based on stored compatibilityidentifiers. The compatibility manager 316 can determine that thecartridge is compatible if it has the same compatibility identifier asthe first ozonation device. Alternatively, a positive determination canbe made if the cartridge and device compatibility identifiers haveanother predetermined relationship with each other, for example are theopposite of each other.

The second ozonation device 320 also includes a cycle count manager 322,and optionally a compatibility identifier 324 and compatibility manager326, which are similar to the above-described cycle count manager 112,compatibility identifier 314, and compatibility manager 316. The cyclecount manager 322 is configured to signal the cartridge 330 uponcompletion of an ozonation cycle of the second ozonation device 320.

The cycle count manager 322 is particularly configured with respect to asecond ozonation device cycle count condition. For example, suppose thesecond ozonation device 320 is a low capacity commercial ozonationdevice capable of performing two or more different ozonation cycles,associated with different types of container or attachment used. Thesecond ozonation device cycle count condition can then be differentdepending on the selected ozonation cycle.

For example, a second ozonation device cycle count condition for avegetable bowl cycle can include achieving a desired ozone concentrationin the water during a running time of about 3 to 4 minutes. In thatcase, the second ozonation device cycle count condition can be dependenton a detection of an ozone concentration in the water, as compared to adesired ozone concentration for a particular cycle, and optionallywithin an operation time window. Regardless of the potential variationin the actual time taken to complete the cycle, the cycle count manager326 can be configured to signal the cartridge 330 after meeting one ormore conditions to satisfy completion of a second ozonation devicecycle.

In an embodiment, if the first and second ozonation device compatibilityidentifiers 314 and 324 are the same, then this signifies that acartridge having that compatibility identifier will work and becompatible with both the first and second ozonation devices 310 and 320.

The cartridge 330 includes an air inlet 332, an air outlet 334, andhouses at least one material 336 to remove moisture and/or nitrogen. Thecartridge is arranged for integration and use with the first ozonationdevice with the second ozonation device. The air inlet 332 is to receiveatmospheric air, and the air outlet 334 is for interfacing with one ofthe first and second ozonation devices to provide dry and/oroxygen-enriched air to an ozone generator.

The cartridge 330 includes a usage counter 338, a stored usage threshold340, and includes a device interface 342. The usage counter 338 modifiesa stored usage count in response to receipt of a signal from the cyclecount manager 316 or 326. The modification of the usage count caninclude incrementing or decrementing the count, depending on theimplementation of the counter. The usage counter 338 can be implementedin a flash memory, or other computer-readable memory orcomputer-readable medium.

The usage threshold 340 is stored in a memory in the cartridge 330. Thecartridge usage threshold 340 can be programmable, so that amanufacturer can program different thresholds for different cartridges.The programmability of the cartridge cycle threshold differs from otherknown cartridges with fixed counts. For instance, certain customers wantto change the cartridge after 650 cycles based on their usage conditionsand requirements, and others want to change after 800 cycles based ondifferent usage conditions and requirements.

For example, with a commercial ozonation device including a triggersprayer, 650 cycles can be run before the cartridge is marked asexpired. The trigger sprayer sends a signal to the cartridge to remove acycle every time the system is run. With a high capacity ozonationdevice, the cartridge lasts for 1,200 gallons. Typical flow can be about2.5 gallons/minute. A cycle can be removed from the cartridge every 45seconds. The cartridge itself receives a signal (in both cases) toremove a cycle from its count. Each system in turn uses differentparameters to determine when to send this cycle completion signal.

In an embodiment, if the usage count stored in the usage counter 338exceeds the stored usage threshold, the cartridge can provide an expiryindication to the device interface 342, indicating that cartridge is nolonger suitable for further use. The device interface 342 can providethe expiry indication in a format readable by the ozonation device inwhich the cartridge is used. In an embodiment, the expiry indication isa separate indication provided to, and stored in, the device interface342.

In another embodiment, the usage count begins at the maximum capacityvalue, and is decremented until it reaches zero. In this case, the firstand second ozonation devices signal the cartridge to decrease, ordecrement, the usage count by one upon completion of an ozonation devicecycle count condition. The providing of a usage count of zero can be anembodiment of providing an expiry indication to the device interface342.

In another example, the usage counter increments upon cycle completion.If the usage count exceeds the usage threshold, the cartridge can changethe usage counter to read “999” or some other value that indicates tothe compatibility manager that the cartridge is not to be used.

In another embodiment, the usage counter 338 can be reset, and thedesiccant material 336 in the cartridge 330 can be dried, thuspermitting re-use and recycling of the cartridge. In an example, theusage counter 338 can be reset in response to receipt of a usage counterreset signal. The usage counter reset signal can be received from anozonation device with which the cartridge is to be used, or from anotherspecialized device including dedicated circuitry to reset the cartridge.

The ozonation device or the specialized device can comprise a usagecounter reset manager, in electrical communication with the deviceinterface 342 of the cartridge when the cartridge is in use or is inplace for usage counter resetting. The usage counter reset signal can beissued after a determination has been made that the desiccant materialhas been sufficiently dried for re-use. Optionally, the usage counterreset manager can determine an expected life of the dried desiccantmaterial. The usage counter reset manager can provide a modified valuewith which the usage counter can be reset, the modified value beingbased on measured properties of the desiccant material.

An advantage of providing the usage counter reset manager as part of aspecialized device, such as a usage counter resetting apparatus, is toremove the ability of users of the ozonation devices to reset the usagecounter. In an example where the usage counter reset manager is providedin the ozonation device, an access controller can be provided torestrict access to the usage counter reset manager. The accesscontroller can be implemented as any mechanical and/or electrical formof access control, such as a physical key, a security card accesscontrol, a biometric identifier, etc.

The cartridge 330 optionally includes a compatibility identifier 344,also referred to as a cartridge compatibility identifier 344. Based on acomparison between the cartridge compatibility identifier and the firstor second ozonation device compatibility identifier, a determination ismade whether the cartridge is compatible with the device. For example,if the cartridge compatibility identifier 344 is the same as the firstor second compatibility identifiers 314 and 324, then that cartridge isactivated or enabled for use with the first or second ozonation devices,respectively.

In an embodiment, the compatibility identifiers 314, 324 and 344 caneach be stored as a line of code in a memory provided in the first andsecond ozonation devices 310 and 320, and the cartridge 330,respectively. If the stored cartridge and device compatibilityidentifiers correspond, or are the same, then the water ozonation devicepermits use of the cartridge in the device. This permits a manufacturerto identify or encode cartridges for use only with apparatuses producedby a particular distributor or for a particular reseller. The cartridgecan be used with water ozonation devices of different types, for examplelow capacity and high capacity commercial devices, as long as thedevices have the same identifier as the cartridge.

Embodiments have been described herein with respect to different typesof commercial ozonation devices and systems. Such commercial devices caninclude a commercial floor scrubber, or a carpet extractor, equippedwith a liquid ozonation device as described herein. In otherembodiments, the features described herein can be incorporated in otherclasses of ozonation devices or systems, such as industrial or consumerozonation devices. In such embodiments, the compatibility identifier canbe used to ensure that a cartridge is compatible only with differenttypes of ozonation devices of the same class. For example, a consumercompatibility identifier, commercial compatibility identifier, orindustrial compatibility identifier can be included in cartridges to beused with one of those classes of ozonation devices having the same, ora corresponding, compatibility identifier.

The cartridge-enhanced water treatment system 300 can include logic todisable usage of an ozonation device after the cartridge has reached apredetermined usage and/or chronological condition or threshold. Thiscondition may be different depending on the type of ozonation device inwhich the cartridge is used. The logic can be provided in the first andsecond ozonation devices 310 and 320, and/or in the cartridge 330.

For example, when a cartridge is inserted and an ozonation device isturned on, a base unit of the ozonation device can read the cartridgeidentifier and check to make sure that the code matches what has beenpreprogrammed on the control board in the base unit, or otherwiseresults in a positive compatibility determination. If it does not, thenthe unit will not run. A similar methodology can apply with respect toreading the usage and/or chronological count, and not permitting thedevice to operate when the usage or chronological count exceeds theprogrammed threshold.

FIG. 8A is a front right perspective view of a cartridge according to anembodiment of the present application. In an embodiment, the usagecounter 338, the usage threshold 340, and the optional compatibilityidentifier 344 are in electrical communication with the device interface342, such as wired communication, wireless communication, or infrared(IR) communication. In the embodiment of FIG. 8A, one, some, or all ofthe usage counter 338, the usage threshold 340, the optionalcompatibility identifier 342, and the device interface 344 can all beprovided in a printed circuit 346 provided on an outer surface of thecartridge, which mates with the ozonation device. FIG. 8B shows anexploded view of a cartridge according to an embodiment of the presentapplication. In this embodiment, the printed circuit 346 can include thefeatures noted above with respect to the embodiment of FIG. 8A and thecartridge can be disassembled and the desiccant material, the nitrogenremoving material and/or the battery for powering the printed circuit346 can be replaced.

FIG. 9 is a mechanical system diagram of an exemplary water sanitizationsystem with which a cartridge according to an embodiment of the presentapplication can be used. The system illustrated in FIG. 9 shows bothwater and air paths, and illustrates a filter that can perform air dryerand water filtration. This system is described herein for illustration,as a background for understanding the operational environments of thepresent application. Another exemplary water sanitization system withwhich a cartridge according to an embodiment of the present applicationcould be used is the system illustrated in FIG. 1, where the cartridgecan be used with ozone generator 16. Ozone generator 16 of FIG. 1 andozone generator 416 of FIG. 9, discussed below, can be usedinterchangeably.

While the embodiments above have described a cartridge which can performair drying, such functionality can be provided in a removable filtercartridge that also provides water filtration. In discussions of FIG. 9,the terms “after” and “before” are used with respect to the water or airflow within the system. The direction of water flow is illustrated atpump motor 406, whereas the direction of air flow is illustrated at airdryer 410.

A reservoir 402 is provided for containing water that is to be, or isbeing, sanitized/purified. The reservoir 402 is a removable watercontainer. Examples of such containers are discussed in commonlyassigned International Patent Application No. WO 2004/113232, publishedon Dec. 29, 2004, which is incorporated herein by reference. A fluidtransfer port or valve 404 is provided at the interface of the reservoir402 with a base unit incorporating the other elements of the systemaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. The fluid transfervalve 404, or fluid control port or liquid interface, allows the controlof fluids, and in particular, but not limited to, the control of fluidsinto and out of the container, which allows the container to be removedwithout leaking.

The flow into and out of the container may occur simultaneously orsequentially. In the case of simultaneous outflow and inflow, water istaken from the reservoir 402, processed, and pumped back to thereservoir. This is preferably done in such a way that the fluid level inthe reservoir is maintained during processing (i.e. the fluid is notdrained from the reservoir, processed and then pumped back into thereservoir). The fluid transfer valve 404 can be implemented in anynumber of ways, such as by way of separate check valves for inflow andoutflow, or a single double check valve (DCV) for both inflow andoutflow. The double check valve arrangement allows water to flow out ofand into the container simultaneously while using a single connectionpoint.

In order to improve mixing, a DCV cap (not shown in the figures) can beprovided at the fluid transfer valve when it is implemented as a doublecheck valve. An angled section of the DCV cap can preferably be removedto allow the water entering the reservoir from the base unit to be lessimpeded and therefore faster moving. This faster moving water causesgreater mixing in the reservoir and means the dissolved ozone level getsup higher and faster in the reservoir.

Water flows from the reservoir 402, through the fluid transfer valve 404to a pump motor 406 provided after the reservoir 402 to draw water fromthe reservoir. Although the pump head and motor functions can beseparated, they are typically implemented in a unitary motor/pumpassembly, such as the pump motor 406, and will be discussed as suchherein, keeping in mind that other implementations are possible. Theelectronics are typically connected to the motor portion, but the pumpand motor are interconnected.

A replaceable cartridge 408, which is removable and preferablydisposable, is provided. The cartridge 408 can include an air dryer 410for function in the air flow path, or air line, of the system and/or awater filter 412 for function in the water flow path, or water line, ofthe system. In terms of air circulation in the system, air typically isdrawn in from the atmosphere via the air dryer 410, and can then passthrough an inlet valve 414, an ozone generator 416, an outlet valve 418,and an ozone contacting device, or mixing device, 420, such as aventuri.

The inlet and outlet valves 414 and 418, alternatively referred to astransfer ports, are optional components of the system and can beimplemented as check valves. They serve to improve performance of thesystem, and particularly the ozone generator 416. The valves 414 and 418co-operate to ensure that when the unit is not running, little or noresidual ozone gas can diffuse out of the system to atmosphere. Somegovernmental safety guidelines and regulations include a virtual noozone gas emissions requirement. The valves 414 and 418 assist inachieving such requirements. The outlet valve 418 prevents water frombacking up into the ozone generator 416 via the ozone contacting device420 when the unit is at rest with a reservoir, or attachment, on it.

The ozone generator 416, which can be a corona-discharge type, convertsa portion of the oxygen in the air (drawn from the atmosphere) intoozone. The ozone is mixed with the water in the ozone contacting device420. The water ozone mixture then preferably passes through an ozone gasatomizer 422 before passing into an off-gas unit 424, which removes theair and undissolved ozone. The removed gas is directed to an ozonedestructor 426, which converts ozone into oxygen and safely releases itinto the atmosphere.

The ozone gas atomizer 422 is provided downstream of the ozonecontacting device 420 and just before the inlet port of the off-gas unit424 in order to increase the contact time between the micro bubbles ofozone gas and the water. The geometry of a preferably necked down inletport of the off-gas and the cyclonic action of the gas/liquid mixture inthe off-gas unit 424 makes the off-gas unit 424 also act as a mixingdevice. This feature can significantly increase the dissolved ozonelevel in the water. An accumulator (not shown in the figures) canpreferably be provided at the top of the off-gas unit 424 that capturesexcess water that escapes out of the off-gas unit 424 via the gas line.This accumulator can drain the excess water back into the off-gas unit424 when the unit is at rest. Having this accumulator prevents waterfrom getting into ozone destructor 426 when the unit is inverted. If theozone destructor 426 (such as provided by CARULITE®) gets wet, it isrendered ineffective at destroying ozone gas.

A sealing check valve (not shown in the figures) can preferably beprovided between the off-gas unit 424 and the ozone destructor 426. Thissealing check valve seals the system from atmosphere in such a way thatwhen the unit is inverted in an attempt to drain water out of it, wateris prevented from leaving the system. It is the same principle asinserting a straw in a drink, covering the end of the straw and thenremoving the straw—the drink stays trapped in the straw. This isadvantageous in a unit according to an embodiment of the presentinvention as it can keep all components wet and the pump primed.

As described earlier with respect to FIG. 9, embodiments of the presentapplication include a removable filter cartridge provided in a base unitof a water sanitization system. The removable filter cartridge 408 caninclude an air dryer 410 and optionally a water filter 412. In otherembodiments, the removable filter cartridge 408 can include a nitrogenremover and optionally a water filter 412. In yet other embodiments, theremovable filter cartridge 408 can include both an air dryer 410 and anitrogen remover, and can optionally include a water filter 412. Asmentioned earlier, the present invention takes advantage of the factthat dry air and/or oxygen-enriched air reacts better in an ozonegenerator, yielding better ozone concentration output, which in turnresults in a better “kill rate” with respect to bacteria when ozonatedwater is applied to food, items or surfaces.

In an embodiment, the removable filter cartridge includes an air dryer410 and does not include a water filter. The air dryer 410 comprises adesiccant material that removes moisture from air.

The air dryer 410 can be placed anywhere in the base unit as long as itis before the ozone generator 416 and the ozone contacting device 420with respect to air flow. The ozone contacting device 420 draws air fromthe atmosphere into the air dryer 410 and then into the ozone generator416. Dry air can achieve much higher concentrations of ozone gas thanhumid air in a corona discharge ozone generator. As such, embodiments ofthe present invention provide a significant increase to theconcentration of dissolved ozone in the water. An examination ofexperimental test results shows an increase in ozone concentration fromapproximately 1 ppm without the air dryer to over 3.5 ppm with the airdryer.

Although FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment where fluid is recirculated(i.e. transported from a reservoir, to an ozone contacting device andreturned to the reservoir), a cartridge according to the presentapplication could also be used in a non-recirculation system. In anon-recirculating system, a fluid is transported from a fluid source toan ozone contacting device and then discharged as a sanitizing ozonatedfluid. Since an ozone generator, which provides ozone to the ozonecontacting device, yields better ozone concentration output from dryand/or oxygen enriched air, it may be beneficial to use a cartridgeaccording to the present application to dry and/or remove nitrogen fromthe air used by the ozone generator.

FIG. 10 is a back perspective view of a removable air dryer cartridge430 installed in a base unit 440 of a water ozonation device accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. The removable air dyercartridge 430 is a particular embodiment of the removable cartridge 408having an air dryer and no water filter, and also having featuresspecific to its use and interconnection with a base unit.

In the preceding description, for purposes of explanation, numerousdetails are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding ofthe embodiments of the application. However, it will be apparent to oneskilled in the art that these specific details are not required in orderto practice the application.

Embodiments described herein can be represented as a software productstored in a machine-readable medium (also referred to as acomputer-readable medium, a processor-readable medium, or a computerusable medium having a computer-readable program code embodied therein).The machine-readable medium can be any suitable tangible medium,including magnetic, optical, or electrical storage medium including adiskette, compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), memory device(volatile or non-volatile), or similar storage mechanism. Themachine-readable medium can contain various sets of instructions, codesequences, configuration information, or other data, which, whenexecuted, cause a processor to perform steps in a method according to anembodiment described herein. Those of ordinary skill in the art willappreciate that other instructions and operations necessary to implementthe described embodiments can also be stored on the machine-readablemedium. Software running from the machine-readable medium can interfacewith circuitry to perform the described tasks.

The above-described embodiments of the application are intended to beexamples only. Alterations, modifications and variations can be effectedto the particular embodiments by those of skill in the art withoutdeparting from the scope of the application, which is defined solely bythe claims appended hereto.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A system for providing a degassed ozonatedliquid comprising dissolved ozone gas, the system comprising: atank-less ozonation flow path having a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet,the ozonation flow path further comprising: a liquid-gas mixer, in fluidcommunication with the liquid inlet, to mix an accepted liquid withgaseous ozone to produce an ozonated liquid which comprises bubbles ofundissolved ozone gas; and a gas-liquid separator, in fluidcommunication with the liquid-gas mixer, to separate the ozonated liquidinto the degassed ozonated liquid and separated gaseous ozone, thegas-liquid separator comprising: a tubular member; a gaseous liquidinlet for entry of the ozonated liquid; a gas outlet arranged to ventthe separated gaseous ozone out of the gas-liquid separator; a liquidoutlet for egress of the degassed ozonated liquid from the gas-liquidseparator; and a separating mixer secured to the tubular member andarranged to direct the flow of the degassed ozonated liquid towards theliquid outlet and to direct the separated gaseous ozone away from theliquid outlet; the liquid inlet arranged to continuously accept asubstantially unozonated liquid into the ozonation flow path at adesired flow rate; the liquid outlet arranged to dispense the degassedozonated liquid out of the system, the degassed ozonated liquid havingan oxidation-reduction potential of at least 450 mV due solely to ozonedissolved in the liquid, the liquid outlet being in fluid communicationwith the liquid inlet and arranged to dispense the degassed ozonatedliquid out of the system at the desired flow rate; the tank-lessozonation flow path adapted to ozonate the accepted liquid, producingthe degassed ozonated liquid to be dispensed out of the system, theaccepted liquid having a fluid residence time in the ozonation flow pathof less than 5 minutes prior to dispensing as the degassed ozonatedliquid.
 2. The system according to claim 1, wherein: the tubular memberhas a side wall, top and bottom end walls, an upper portion and a lowerportion; the gaseous liquid inlet is located in the lower portion of thetubular member and arranged to create a vortex of the ozonated liquid inthe gas-liquid separator, the vortex having a centre of rotation and alow pressure zone located within the centre of rotation for coalescingundissolved gaseous ozone bubbles; the gas outlet is located in theupper portion of the tubular member; the separating mixer comprises: anannular separating baffle which is secured to the side wall of thetubular member, the annular separating baffle and the side wall definingan annular degassed liquid region therebetween, the annular separatingbaffle being arranged to direct the flow of the degassed ozonated liquidtowards the liquid outlet and to direct the coalescing undissolvedgaseous ozone away from the liquid outlet; and the liquid outlet is foregress of the degassed ozonated liquid from the annular degassed liquidregion.
 3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the annularseparating baffle is positioned in line with the liquid outlet.
 4. Thesystem according to claim 2, wherein the annular degassed liquid regionis open at both a top end and a bottom end, the degassed liquid beingflowable between the top end and the bottom end.
 5. The system accordingto claim 2, wherein the liquid outlet is for egress of the degassedliquid from the annular degassed liquid region.
 6. The system accordingto claim 2, wherein the gaseous liquid inlet is positioned substantiallytangential to the side wall of the tubular member.
 7. The systemaccording to claim 2, wherein the liquid outlet is an annular aperturedefined by the side wall.
 8. The system according to claim 2, whereinthe liquid outlet is positioned substantially tangential to the sidewall of the tubular member.
 9. The system according to claim 2, furthercomprising a mixing baffle concentric with the annular separatingbaffle, the radius of the mixing baffle being smaller than the radius ofthe annular separating baffle.
 10. The system according to claim 9,wherein the annular separating baffle and the annular mixing baffleshare a common center.
 11. The system according to claim 1, wherein thetubular member comprises a side wall and the separating mixer comprisesan annular separating baffle concentric with the tubular member.
 12. Thesystem according to claim 11, further comprising a mixing baffleconcentric with the annular separating baffle, the radius of the mixingbaffle being smaller than the radius of the annular separating baffle.13. The system according to claim 1, wherein: the gaseous liquid inletis arranged to create a vortex of the ozonated liquid in the gas-liquidseparator, the vortex having a center of rotation and a low pressurezone located within the center of rotation for coalescing undissolvedgaseous ozone bubbles, and wherein the separating mixer directs thecoalescing undissolved gaseous ozone bubbles away from the liquidoutlet.
 14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the tubular membercomprises a side wall and the separating mixer comprises an annularseparating baffle concentric with the tubular member, the annularseparating baffle and the side wall of the tubular member defining anannular degassed liquid region therebetween, wherein the liquid outletis for egress of the degassed ozonated liquid from the annular degassedliquid region, and wherein the annular separating baffle directs thecoalescing undissolved gaseous ozone bubbles away from the annulardegassed liquid region.
 15. The system according to claim 14, furthercomprising a mixing baffle concentric with the annular separatingbaffle, the radius of the mixing baffle being smaller than the radius ofthe annular separating baffle.
 16. A gas-liquid separator comprising: atubular member; a gaseous liquid inlet for entry of the ozonated liquid;a gas outlet arranged to vent the separated gaseous ozone out of thegas-liquid separator; a liquid outlet for egress of the degassedozonated liquid from the gas-liquid separator; and a separating mixersecured to the tubular member and arranged to direct the flow of thedegassed ozonated liquid towards the liquid outlet and to direct theseparated gaseous ozone away from the liquid outlet.
 17. The gas-liquidseparator according to claim 16, wherein the tubular member comprises aside wall and the separating mixer comprises an annular separatingbaffle concentric with the tubular member.
 18. The gas-liquid separatoraccording to claim 17, further comprising a mixing baffle concentricwith the annular separating baffle, the radius of the mixing bafflebeing smaller than the radius of the annular separating baffle.
 19. Thegas-liquid separator according to claim 16, wherein: the gaseous liquidinlet is arranged to create a vortex of the ozonated liquid in thegas-liquid separator, the vortex having a center of rotation and a lowpressure zone located within the center of rotation for coalescingundissolved gaseous ozone bubbles, and wherein the separating mixerdirects the coalescing undissolved gaseous ozone bubbles away from theliquid outlet.
 20. The gas-liquid separator according to claim 19,wherein the tubular member comprises a side wall and the separatingmixer comprises an annular separating baffle concentric with the tubularmember, the annular separating baffle and the side wall of the tubularmember defining an annular degassed liquid region therebetween, whereinthe liquid outlet is for egress of the degassed ozonated liquid from theannular degassed liquid region, and wherein the annular separatingbaffle directs the coalescing undissolved gaseous ozone bubbles awayfrom the annular degassed liquid region.
 21. The gas-liquid separatoraccording to claim 20, further comprising a mixing baffle concentricwith the annular separating baffle, the radius of the mixing bafflebeing smaller than the radius of the annular separating baffle.
 22. Amethod for producing a degassed ozonated liquid, the method comprising:accepting a liquid into a tank-less ozonation flow path; mixing, using amixer in the tank-less ozonation flow path, the accepted liquid withgaseous ozone to produce an ozonated liquid which comprises bubbles ofundissolved ozone gas; separating the ozonated liquid into the degassedozonated liquid and separated gaseous ozone, using a gas-liquidseparator which comprises: a tubular member; a gaseous liquid inlet forentry of the ozonated liquid; a gas outlet arranged to vent theseparated gaseous ozone out of the gas-liquid separator; a liquid outletfor egress of the degassed ozonated liquid from the gas-liquidseparator; and a separating mixer secured to the tubular member andarranged to direct the flow of the degassed ozonated liquid towards theliquid outlet and to direct the separated gaseous ozone away from theliquid outlet; and dispensing the degassed ozonated liquid from thetank-less ozonation flow path, the degassed ozonated liquid having anoxidation-reduction potential of at least 450 mV due solely to ozonedissolved in the liquid; wherein the accepted liquid has a fluidresidence time in the tank-less ozonation flow path of less than 5minutes.